The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 491 The old man has nowhere to go

In the 32nd year of Wanli's reign, Kang Yingqian passed the imperial examination and served as an official in Chenzhou, Jingkou and other places.

In the 46th year of the Wanli reign, he supervised the army in Liaodong, and in the 47th year of the Wanli reign, he rushed to the battlefield of Sarhu. After meeting a time traveler, Kang Yingqian's fate began to change significantly.

During the Taichang period, Kang Yingqian was already second only to the emperor in Liaodong. In the early years of Chongzhen, as the Kaiyuan army entered the pass to support the emperor, Kang Yingqian was promoted together with Ping Liaohou and became the highest official in the country.

In the first year of Wuding, Kang Yingqian was promoted to Prime Minister of Da Qi and soon reached the peak of power.

As the saying goes, when one person succeeds, the whole family will prosper. After Kang Yingqian came to power, the Kang family's old house in Jize County, Guangping Prefecture was immediately "renovated".

The Kang Mansion was expanded from more than 30 houses to 300 houses.

There are four courtyards, including the Sun-Holding Tower, Chunzhong Hall, the Ancestral Hall of Prime Minister Kang, the Wenchang Pavilion, the Vajra Pavilion, and the Grand Secretary's Mansion.

All the expenses required for the renovation project were borne by the prefect of Guangping Prefecture and the magistrate of Jieze County. Not only that, several magistrates personally visited the construction site to supervise the work. Zhang Yingkui, the prefect of Guangping, wrote an inscription on the plaque of the Kang Mansion and recognized Kang Yinggan's eighty-year-old father as his godfather overnight.

The local wealthy and powerful people and dignitaries flattered the Kang family to the utmost. Starting from the 47th year of Wanli, a large number of advisors with foreign accents would flock to Jieze County around the New Year. These were Kaiyuan officials who came from Liaodong and Shandong to pay gifts.

Sun Yuling, a famous scholar in the late Ming and early Qi dynasties, once passed by Jize County and described Kang Mansion as follows:

Fireworks blazed in the air, incense dust blanketed the ground, flaming trees and emerald flowers littered the courtyard, windows and thresholds adorned with gold and jade. Curtains swirled like shrimp whiskers, carpets covered with otter fish, tripods wafted with musk deer, screens lined with pheasant tails. The sheer splendor was unspeakable, dazzling and dazzling.

However, all these prosperous scenes soon vanished after Kang Yingqian lost power.

As early as when Kang Yinggan was suspected by the retired emperor and dismissed from the position of prime minister, the prefect Zhang Yingkui ordered the Jieze county magistrate Li Lusheng to seal all entrances and exits of Kang's mansion, saying that it was to prevent the criminal's family from escaping with valuables and gold and silver.

As a result, dozens of people in the Kang family had no time to leave and were locked inside the door.

After learning that Kang Yingqian had been arrested and imprisoned and was being tried by the Suoyi Guards, the gentlemen of Yongping Prefecture, both big and small, were like hungry wolves. Without waiting for the Emperor Wuding's order, they rushed into Kang's Mansion and began to ransack his property.

It took half a month from sealing the door to ransacking the house.

Over half a month, some people in Kang's house starved to death, and a tragic scene unfolded before the world:

Seventeen members of the Kang family, including the elderly, children, women and kids, starved to death in the mansion. Some of their bodies were devoured by the hungry dogs.

According to the laws of the Great Qi Dynasty, there were usually only three charges for officials to have their homes confiscated: one was treason, two was high treason, and three was conspiracy.

Which of these charges did Kang Yingqian fall under? For now, let's not talk about him. It was Kang Yingqian who made so much money when he was in office. Now that he's out of power, he's become a lamb to be slaughtered. Jize County wasn't very wealthy to begin with, and now they've finally got a fat sheep. How could these officials let it go without squeezing the Kang family dry?

Moreover, this matter must be done as soon as possible, because once the court sends military supervisors and imperial envoys, it will be difficult to get the money because there will be too many people around.

At this time, the news that Kang Yingqian was rewarded with 40,000 taels of silver and allowed to return home by the emperor had not yet reached Guangping Prefecture.

The efficiency shown by these local gluttons in recovering stolen goods is astonishing.

They searched and tortured, forcing Kang Yingqian's family to hand over the silver.

All the property of Kang Yingqian's brothers and nephews was searched out, and the prefect of Guangping and the magistrate of Jieze got a total of 30,000 taels of gold and 800,000 taels of silver.

The masters were still not satisfied with this figure and continued to torture the Kang family, forcing them to reveal the three million taels of silver hidden outside. They would not stop until they recovered the three million taels.

The Kang family was forced into poverty, and several of Kang Yingqian's good friends in Guangping Prefecture, such as Zeng Shengru, Wang Jin, Fu Zuoche, etc., were also implicated. These people can be said to be "sitting at home when disaster strikes from the sky". For no apparent reason, their homes were raided by the masters on the charge of harboring hidden silver.

Several of Kang Yingqian's brothers and nephews were interrogated separately and thrown into Jieze County Prison, where they were subjected to various severe tortures.

At this time, it was only nine months since Kang Yingqian stepped down. In nine months, the Kang family went from being a wealthy family to being broken up!
Unable to bear the violence and humiliation, Kang Yingqian's eldest nephew Kang Jingxiu bit his finger and wrote a blood letter on his clothes to defend his uncle's innocence.

This article is a heavy document in the midst of this storm, and an excerpt is here:
Alas, Heaven is ignorant, seemingly bereft of the virtue of loving life; the human heart is unpredictable, uncaring for the loyalty of one who has devoted all one's life. I lament that there is no one to free me from the net, and lament that I am imprisoned for no crime. Even if I speak a hundred times, no one can release me from the slander. I can only vow death to redress my grievances.

My ancestor was an old relative of Gan Pan, and we were in a close relationship. During his ten years of assistance, he only wanted to lay a solid foundation for the empire. He did not seek praise, nor did he care about criticism, which led to the disaster we have today. He respected and cultivated us with the intention of raising our heirs, and now that we have suffered this misfortune, how dare I, who valued my own life, remain silent?

I recall hearing the news on March 21st of last year, and moving back to our old house on the 22nd. The men and women were horrified beyond words. On the fifth day of the fifth month, the Jieze County Magistrate arrived. On the seventh, Jingxiu was brought in for questioning. The way he muttered and the officers roared at him was something I had never experienced before, not to mention the three wooden shackles and the veil on his head. Jingxiu wasn't a cause for concern, but they're trying to force my father to pay them three million silver coins. They don't realize that throughout my career, my father's reputation for integrity spread throughout the land. Not only could he not repay the debt by selling all his wealth, but even his life wouldn't be enough to pay it back! Furthermore, they're trying to falsely claim that Zeng Que'an (Shengru) sent 150,000 silver coins, Wang Jin sent 200,000 silver coins, and Fu Dachuan (Zuoche) sent 500,000 silver coins, saying, "If you comply, fine; if you don't, you'll be acting according to Heaven's will!" Such threats are chilling. Alas, these three families have always resented the government, and the troubles were caused by the Kang family. Yet, they still rely on hundreds of thousands of dollars for support. How foolish they are... Alas! Who doesn't love life and fear death? Jingxiu has encountered such a situation. He will definitely not be able to survive in the future! Looking at it from a broad perspective, Confucius died a saint, Hui died a wise man. Some deaths are heavier than Mount Tai, while others are lighter than a feather. I have carefully considered them at this moment. As for my father, he seemed to be overreaching while in office, and worried about the country when he left office. He only thought of the heavy responsibility of guarding the country and sacrificed his life for the country, unable to avoid danger in advance, which led to this situation. His merits and demerits, like the false accusations made by the Liao vassal today, will be judged by the world and future generations. Jingxiu does not need to argue.

Alas, the blazing yellow furnace fire has dimmed like a black river, like morning dew, and life is over. How can I not be sad! If possible, inform Kang Fengpan, the magistrate of Puzhou, Shanxi, that the Kang family affair is now complete. May he assist the Great Qi for countless more years! ...

~~~~~~
On the 23rd day of the 12th month of the second year of Taichu in the Great Qi Dynasty, in Jize County, Guangping Prefecture.

The gate of the Kang Mansion, which was once bustling with people, was now deserted. Not to mention the dignitaries from other provinces who came to make friends with the family, the ordinary local people avoided the Kang family as if they were the plague god. Even the beggars begging on the streets knew that this was the underworld and would take a detour when begging.

Two ferocious-looking county yamen runners stood at the gate of the courtyard, each holding a knife and glaring fiercely at the passers-by.

In the front yard covered with weeds, the wing rooms still retain their original appearance, but cracks have climbed up the carved doors and windows. The carved doors and windows are no longer bright, and the bright hall is now covered with cobwebs.

Kang Yingqian's eldest nephew Kang Jingxiu, wearing handcuffs and shackles, curled up in the yard, staring blankly at the sky above his head.

He is only thirty years old this year, but because he was tortured and beaten some time ago, two of his teeth fell out, his hair turned gray, and he looked very old.

"Where is the criminal? Did he escape?"

Two Jize County clerks walked straight into the Kang Mansion and said to Kang Yingqian's nephew, who was sitting cross-legged in the corner of the courtyard:
"Why are you running out here instead of sitting inside? If you freeze to death, the county won't be responsible!"

Kang Jingxiu tilted his head inside, closed his eyes, ignored the two of them, and seemed to be half asleep.

"Are you going to give me the jade pendant I asked for the other day or not?"

"Your uncle stole a Dong Qichang painting from the Koreans, but it wasn't found during the house search. Hand it over now! Otherwise, you'll suffer the consequences!"

Two clerks stood in the courtyard, cursing under their breath.

"Give it or not! Don't think you are Kang Yingqian's nephew. He is still imprisoned in the imperial prison! You are just fish on the chopping board!"

The two clerks exchanged glances, pulled out black iron rods from their sleeves, and with ferocious looks on their faces, they pretended to hit Kang Jingxiu again.

When Kang Jingxiu saw the iron rod, he subconsciously shrank his body and stepped back.

These days, the Kang family has been extorted and tortured by the local masters over and over again. Now they have nothing left to give except the worn-out clothes on their bodies.

"Okay, I'll serve you well today and let you know what it feels like to be a prisoner of the emperor!"

The clerk with a fierce face swung his stick and started beating him. The sound of sticks hitting flesh could be heard in the courtyard. Kang Jingxiu was like a wounded beast, letting out a low wail.

In Jieze County, the rule of the Great Qi is extremely weak, and the officials are basically the old people from the former Ming Dynasty. The emperor is far away, and no one will come to rescue you even if you shout at the top of your lungs.

"Speak or not! Where is the silver?"

Suddenly, a thunderous roar came from behind.

"stop!!"

When the two clerks looked back, they saw a very burly military commander rushing into the courtyard at some point, holding a huge mace and followed by a group of soldiers in black clothes. It seemed that they had bad intentions.

Outside the compound, the yamen guard who was in charge of guarding the Kang family was lying on the ground, holding his stomach and howling.

"You, who are you? He is a wanted criminal of the imperial court."

The clerk was shocked by the momentum and was at a loss as to what to do. He stood there in a daze.

A young military officer rushed out from behind the giant, threw an imperial edict from his sleeve, and threw it at the two county officials:

"The Emperor has issued an edict to pardon Prime Minister Kang. You've been exploiting the Kang family and driving them to this point! Is Jize County still the domain of the Great Qi? Today, I, Wu Xiao, will clean up the mess for the Emperor and kill all of you rats!"

(End of this chapter)